Iris ensata
We have been importing newer and older historic irises from Japan for many years. All have been registered with the American Iris Society (AIS) and are eligible to enter AIS Sanctioned Shows.
Iris ensata has been selectively bred from wild forms found in northern Asia. Their cultural needs are very demanding, if met they will reward you with a magnificent display of color approximately 2-4 weeks after Tall Bearded bloom. Peak bloom in our garden is the last two weeks of June. Culture has a great influence; please refer to the culture page. Note: Grow as you would a productive summertime vegetable garden, with moist well-drained compost-rich soil that is slightly acidic (no lime or bone meal).
Payne Award/Medal: The Payne Medal, named for W. Arlie Payne, is the highest award given by the American Iris Society that a Japanese iris can receive in its class. Payne Medal winners are then eligible to win the Dykes Medal, which is the highest award an iris can receive from The American Iris Society. 1992 and prior the highest award a Japanese Iris could receive was the Payne Award. This award has now been elevated to a medal status. A brief of W. Arlie Payne by Clarence Mahan.
Mt Pleasant Iris Farm is pleased to offer many top award winners for your garden. Payne Award: PW Payne Medal: PM
Key to the descriptions
F = Falls Number of Petals, 3F single, 6F double, 9F–12F peony form
E, M, L, V = Bloom Season, Early, Mid-Season, Late, and Very
At Mt Pleasant Iris Farm peak season is the last week of June going into the first week of July. VE varieties may start blooming in the first or second week of June. With VL varieties starting to bloom the first week of July. Each varietal clump when established should be in color with bloom for a minimum of two weeks.
RE = Rebloom has been noted in our fields, not guaranteed.
36″, 40″ Height of the plant.
Bloom 3″, 10″ Approximate diameter of the bloom.
Buds 2-4 Number of buds to a stem.
The last three listed items Height, Bloom Size, and Number of Buds all are heavily dictated by the culture given. The same plant might be 30″ or 40″ tall depending on the soil and water needs given.
Aki No Nishiki
$35.00 |
Red-violet, white blaze and rays | 3F, M, 36″, Bloom 6″-7″ Buds 2-3 |
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Ama No Hagoromo
Sold Out |
White, edged and randomly speckled blue-violet | 9F, M, 30″, Bloom 7″, Buds 3-5 |
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Ashi No Ukifune
Sold Out |
Light silver violet, darker veins, and halos, Style Arms dark purple. | 6F, ML, 36″, Bloom 6″, Buds 2-4 |
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Beni Huyou
$35.00 |
Red-violet, white blaze and rays | 6F, ML, 36″, Bloom 7″ Buds 4-7 |
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Bewitching Twilight
Sold Out |
Light pastel blue | 6+F, M, 41″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 2-4 PM 2013 |
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Butterflies In Flight
Sold Out |
Light blue veined darker | 6F, L, 48″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 3-4 PM 1998 |
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Caprician Butterfly
$12.00 |
White veined purple | 6F, M, 36″, Bloom 7″-8″ Buds 5-6 PW 1990 PM 1994 |
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Cascade Crest
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White ground sanded pale blue-violet | 6F, M, 48″, Bloom 6″-8″, Buds 2-3 PM 1995 |
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Cascade Spice
Sold Out |
White ground freckled blue-violet, banded red-violet | 6F, ML, 42″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 3-5 | |
Celestial Emperor
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Silver ground red-violet band and veins. Blue halo surrounding yellow signals | 6F, ML, 38″, Bloom 9″-10″, Buds 2-3 | |
Columbia Crest
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Royal purple with a deep blue undertone | 6F, L, 50″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 3-5 | |
Daikagura
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Dark wine red, velvet texture | 3F, M, 44″, Bloom 6″, Buds 2-4 |
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Dalle Whitewater
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White ground sanded mid-blue-violet | 6F, L, 48″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 3-5 PM 2021 |
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Dancing Waves
Sold Out |
Blends of dark violet to purple, sharp white edge | 6F, ML, 42″, Bloom 9″-10″, Buds 2 PA 1968 |
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Datedōgu
$35.00 |
Red-violet, white blaze, and faint rays | 3F, EM, 42″, Blooms 5″, Buds 3-4 |
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Dirigo Devil
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Mid Red-violet splashed lighter | 6F, L, 44″, Bloom 5″-6″, Buds 3-5 | |
Electric Rays
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Dark violet, neon blue rays | 6F, M, 50″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 2 PM 1997 |
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Embossed
Sold Out |
Light violet, darker halo, and veins | 6F, M, 45″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 3 | |
Freckled Peacock
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White freckled red-violet | 3F, M, 54″, Bloom 7″-8″, buds 5-7 | |
Frosted Intrigue
Sold Out |
Blends of dark blue and red-violet | 6F, M, 36″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 4-5 | |
Frosted Pyramid
Sold Out |
White self | 9F, L, 44″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 2-4 | |
Geishōui
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Bright red-violet, large white blaze, and rays | 9F, L, 42″, Bloom 6″, Buds 2 Note: Not “The” first 9F created however one of the first. |
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Gyokuhōren
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Light violet, darker at the edges. Unique flower form staying in an open cup. | 3F, EM, 36″, Bloom 3″, Buds 2-3 |
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Hakuryu No Tsume
$35.00 |
White self. Most blooms stay in a closed bud form for the life of the flower, great for Ikebana. | 3F, M, 42″, Bloom 4″, Buds 5-7 |
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Hekihō
$35.00 |
Rich blue-violet | 3F, ML, 28″, Bloom 6″, Buds 2-3 |
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Hime Kagami
Sold Out |
Pink self | 6F, EM, 36″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 5-6 | |
Hinamatsuri
$40.00 |
Deep rich pink | 3F, E, 26″, Bloom 8″-9″, Buds 4-6 |
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Indigo Angel
Sold Out |
Violet ground darker halo and veins, red-violet band-edged white | 6F, M, 32″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 2-3 PM 2019 |
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Izumigawa
$35.00 |
Pale blue-violet with darker veins and style arms | 6F, M, 42″, Bloom 5″-6″, Buds 3-4 |
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Jaciva
Sold Out |
Mid-blue-violet | 6F, ML, 42″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 3-4 | |
Janomegasa
$35.00 |
Pale lilac with darker halos and veins of blue-violet | 6F, VE, 40″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 3-4 |
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Japanese Plum
$12.00 |
Velvety red-violet, dark-style arms | 6F, M, 38″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 3-4 | |
Kagurajishi
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Dark velvet purple | 9F, M, 38″, Bloom 10″, Buds 2-3 |
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Kokuryu No Tsume
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White with a strong edge of dark violet. Most blooms stay in a closed bud form for the life of the flower, great for Ikebana. | 3F, EM, 44″, Bloom 3″, Buds 2-3 |
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Kotohime
Sold Out |
Bright rich lilac/pink | 3F, M, 32″, Bloom 10″-11″ Buds 2-3 |
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Lake Effect
Sold Out |
Blue lighter edges | 6F, M, 36″, Bloom 8″-9″, Buds 2-4 PM 2016 |
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Lion King
Sold Out |
White, edged and freckled red-violet | 9F, M, 42″, Bloom 8″-9″, Buds 3-6 | |
Miharayama
$35.00 |
rich velvet dark purple | 6F, ML, 32″, Bloom 8″, Buds 2-3 |
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Miyabi
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Bright mid-lilac/pink | 6F, EM, 38″, Bloom8″, Buds 2 |
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Mulberry Halos
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Silver-violet ground, mulberry halo, and veins | 6F, L, 38″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 2-3 | |
My Elisabeth
$12.00 |
Large mid-blue-violet | 6F, M, 42″, Bloom 9″-10″, Buds 3-4 Tetraploid |
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Natsusugata
$35.00 |
White ground sanded and veined red and blue-violet blends. Very round bowl form. | 6F, EM, 38″, Bloom 6″, Buds 2-4 |
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Night Angel Sold Out $12.00 Aitken 1996 |
Dark blue-violet, ray pattern | 6F, ML, 36″, Bloom 6″-8″, Buds 2-3 | |
Niji No Tomoe
Sold Out |
Red-violet, strong white blaze radiating as rays. White standards edged red-violet | 3F, E, 38″, Bloom 6″, Buds 4-6 |
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Nishikiori
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Red-violet randomly streaked white | 6F, M, 35″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 4-6 | |
Ochiba Goromo
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White lightly brushed pastel blue-violet. White standards with a sharp edge of red-violet. | 3F, M, 30″, Bloom 5″-6″, Buds 2-4 |
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Ol’Man River
$12.00 |
Red-violet, lightly splashed with white | 6F, L, 49″, Bloom 5″-6″, Buds 4-7 | |
Oriental Classic
Sold Out |
Large white self | 6F, M, 38″, Bloom 9″-10″, Buds 5-7 Tetraploid |
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Pagoda Temple
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Rich blends of violet, a true hose-n-hose, one bloom inside another | 12+F, M, 36″, Bloom 6″-7″, Buds 2 | |
Peacock Strut
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Soft sky blue-violet | 3F, L, 42″, Bloom 8″-9″, Buds 2 | |
Picotee Princess
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White ground sanded soft lilac | 6F, L, 44″, Bloom 8″-9″, Buds 4-6 | |
Pleasant Earlybird
$12.00 |
Pastel blue-violet, long bloom season | 3F, VE, 44″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 5-7 | |
Pleasant Sandman
Sold Out |
Large bloom sanded blends of violet | 6F, M, 44″, Bloom 9″-10″, Buds 3 | |
Renjō No Tama
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Pastel lilac, white center blaze | 6F, M, 32″, Bloom 6″, Buds 2-4 |
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Sakuragawa
$35.00 |
White ground heavily sanded blends of red-blue-violet | 6F, L, 48″, Blooms 5″, Buds 2 |
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Sanded Treasure
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Warm blends of violet | 6F, L, 36″, Blooms 7″-8″, Buds 3-4 | |
Shining Prince
$12.00 |
Rich violet with white rays | 6F, M, 37″, Bloom 7″-8″, Buds 2-3 | |
Shinsou Kajin
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Pastel wisteria, mid-violet standards. | 3F, M, 48″, Bloom 8″, Buds 4-7 |
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Shūshi No Homare
$35.00 |
White base sanded mid-red-violet, standards darker red-violet edged white. | 3F, ML, 34″, Bloom 4″, Buds 2-4 |
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Silent Thunder
Sold Out |
Mid-red-violet, one of the last to start blooming | 9F, VL, 48″, Bloom 8″-9″, Buds 4-6 | |
Silverband
$12.00 |
Dark red-violet with striking variegated white and green foliage | 3F, M, 36″, Bloom 3″-4″, Buds 2-4 | |
Souseiki
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Dark purple-edged white, large and lightly ruffled. | 6F, M, 30″, Bloom 10″, Buds 2 |
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Stella Niagara
$12.00 |
Blue-violet large white blaze | 3F, M, 38″, Bloom 5″-6″, Buds 4-6 | |
Sugar Dome
Sold Out |
Mid-blue-violet, multiple white styles | 6F, L, 42″, Blooms 7″-8″, Buds 3 PM 2015 |
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Summer Echoes
Sold Out |
Very large blooms of soft lilac fading to pink. | 3F, VE, RE, 34″, Blooms 10″-12″ Buds 2-3 |
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Sunrise Ridge
$12.00 |
Red-violet, white blaze, and rays | 6F, M, 40″, Blooms 7″-8″, Buds 2-4 | |
Tatsutagawa
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White random-edged red-violet. Note: This is one of the original 40 that started the Higo style of breeding. |
3F, M, 40″, Bloom 8″, Buds 2-4 |
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Thoroughbred
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White, bright blue halo and veins. Standards purple edged white | 3F, M, 38″, Bloom 8″-10″, Buds 2 Tetraploid |
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Tsuru No Kegoromo
$35.00 |
Pure white | 3F, M, 50″, Blooms 6″-7″, Buds 2-3 |
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Twilight’s Splendor
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Pale Blue-violet ground, darker halos, and veins | 6F, L, 38″, Blooms 8″-9″, Buds 2-3 | |
Wadatsumi (2)
$35.00 |
Mid-lilac-violet, white ray pattern, standards red-violet. There are two different Wadatsumi Reg. with AIS, hence the (2) after this name. |
3F, E, 38″, Bloom 5″-6″, Buds 2-4 |
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Warai Hotei
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Mid-blue-violet, darker veins, style arms black-purple. | 6F, L, 38″, Blooms 6″-7″, Buds 2 |
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Yamataikoku
Sold Out |
Large rich velvet royal purple | 3F, M, 36″, Bloom 8″-9″, Buds 3-4 | |
Zama No Mori
$35.00 |
Very pale pastel blue-violet fading to white, standards white-edged pale blue-violet. | 3F, M, 38″, Bloom 6″, Buds 2-4 |
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Zuihō
$35.00 |
Mid-purple fading to Mid-violet, red-violet standards. Very stiff upright foliage. |
3F, M, 28″, Bloom 5″, Buds 2 |
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